In the past few months I've seen some bad, boring movies and for that reason and others, I have slowed down my summer movie viewing craziness from past years (from my film log, I'd have to say the start of the new year is when I view the most movies and then summer is the lagging time of movie viewing).
Here is a sample of the really movies I disliked that I've seen in the past few months:
Russian Ark - disappointing!
The Last Days of Disco - I wanted to slap all the characters and shove them into a bodybag
Sex, lies and videotape
Ordinary People - boring!
A Serious Man - the main character was annoying, not unserious, just annoying
Machuca - disappointing
To counter that, here are some movies I really liked:
Paris, Texas - I thought Wings of Desire was pretty boring (don't hate me!), so I hesitated to see this from Wim Wenders. It turned out to be a true masterpiece.
Together (Tillsammans) - I saw this last night and it was hilarious.
Knocked Up, 40-Year-Old Virgin, Funny People - Judd Apatow is my newest addition to my favourite directors list
Thelma and Louise
Inglorious Basterds
Croupier
Mysterious Skin - JGL is so good
Music that Makes Me Wish I Knew How to Dance
You know I love lists. And I love hit summer songs until they get overplayed on the radio. Unless, well, they are more under-the-radar. Here is a list of songs that I have recently discovered that anyone, even the most soulless enemy, would feel the groove to (in no particular order)
Mark Ronson & Business Intl - Bang Bang Bang (Russ Chimes Remix) ... the original's really boring!
Swedish House Mafia - One and One (Your Name) feat. Pharrell
Edward Maya feat. Vika Jigulina - Stereo Love
Megan C - I Got It
Sunloverz - Summer Love
Film Lists
About 6 years ago in English class I was handed a list of AFI's (American Film Institute) top 100 movies, told to choose one, screen it and write about it.
I chose Citizen Kane because I knew there'd be lots of material about it. I then took the list and made a conscious decision that I would view every one of the films. Thus started my foray into film craziness and more of a film education than I feel like the education I would've gotten in 4 years of film studies (if I had gone into film studies for university, for example).
Fast forward (or skip, but even DVD-speak is going out) 6 years and I have two more films to go! Two more! They are 1931's Frankenstein and 1939's Gone With the Wind. After I'm done these it would feel to me like what watchers of Lost felt when the show ended, probably: something is missing.
But no matter, because there's always the BFI's (British Film Institute) top 100 list and IMDB's top 250 lists I'm working on and this and that list. Along the way, I've watched a lot of (mostly European) foreign films and read a lot on films and film analysis while I was actually supposed to be reading stuff for geography or linguistics.
I'm not done yet, but if you asked me which movie was my favourite of the AFI 100, I wouldn't be able to tell you. Indeed, the list is pretty sad now that I look over it again because it reminds me that cinematic history is reflective of history in general: written (or directed by) white males. I could add in all sorts of identity markers too, like straight and rich and on and on but race and gender are the two annoyances I have with AFI's list. Even in other countries and on international lists, females really do not have a place in cinematic history as of current. I look at lists like Jonathan Rosenbaum's 1,001 films to see before you die lists and the Criterion Collection I think I really don't want to spend my time watching yet more Japanese movies about samurai or westerns about avenging someone or other. Michael Kaminski wrote a good article about why more women need to be producing and receiving film.
Another upcoming landmark is my 1,000th film logged in my film log (as of today I have watched 948 films since June 23, 2003). Okay I think that you'd think me more crazy than wanting to celebrate with me since I told you this.
Update: Music
Here is what I am listening to right now:
The XX. I love the duo singers. Their voices complement each other really well.
Lone Wolf. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aogO8ODj4PE
Janelle Monae.
